Bill Text: NY S00653 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Relates to electronic delivery of property/casualty insurance notices and posting property/casualty insurance policies on the internet; authorizes electronic delivery of insurance notices with consent and the posting of policies on the internet if certain conditions are met; requires notice in the subject line and body of an email to be clear and conspicuous.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2021-12-22 - APPROVAL MEMO.122 [S00653 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-S00653-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                           653

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                       (Prefiled)

                                     January 6, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen. SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Insurance

        AN ACT to amend the insurance law, in relation to electronic delivery of
          property/casualty insurance notices

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  The insurance law is amended by adding a new section 3457
     2  to read as follows:
     3    § 3457. Electronic notices and documents. (a) As used in this section,
     4  the following words shall have the following meanings:
     5    (1) "Delivered by electronic means" includes:
     6    (A) delivery to an electronic  mail  address  at  which  a  party  has
     7  consented to receive notices or documents; or
     8    (B) posting on an electronic network or site accessible via the inter-
     9  net,  mobile  application, computer, mobile device, tablet, or any other
    10  electronic device, together with separate notice of  the  posting  which
    11  shall  be  provided by electronic mail to the address at which the party
    12  has consented to receive notice or by any other delivery method that has
    13  been consented to by the party.
    14    (2) "Party" means any recipient of any notice or document required  as
    15  part  of  a  property/casualty  insurance transaction, including but not
    16  limited to an applicant, an insured, or a policyholder.
    17    (3) "Clickwrap agreement" means a digital prompt that offers  individ-
    18  uals the opportunity to acknowledge receipt of an electronic document.
    19    (b) Subject to the requirements of this section, any notice to a party
    20  or   any   other   document   required   under   applicable   law  in  a
    21  property/casualty insurance transaction or that is to serve as  evidence
    22  of  property/casualty  insurance  coverage may be delivered, stored, and
    23  presented by electronic means so long as it meets  the  requirements  of
    24  article three of the state technology law.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05115-01-1
        S. 653                              2

     1    (c)  Delivery  of a notice or document in accordance with this section
     2  shall be considered equivalent to any  delivery  method  required  under
     3  applicable  law,  including  delivery  by  first class mail; first class
     4  mail, postage prepaid; certified mail; certificate of mail;  or  certif-
     5  icate of mailing.
     6    (d)  A  notice  or document may be delivered by electronic means by an
     7  insurer to a party under this section if:
     8    (1) the party has affirmatively consented to that method  of  delivery
     9  and has not withdrawn the consent;
    10    (2)  the  party,  before  giving consent, is provided with a clear and
    11  conspicuous statement informing the party of:
    12    (A) the right of the party to withdraw consent to  have  a  notice  or
    13  document  delivered by electronic means, at any time, and any conditions
    14  or consequences imposed in the event consent is withdrawn;
    15    (B) the types of notices and documents to which  the  party's  consent
    16  would apply;
    17    (C)  the  right  of  a party to have a notice or document delivered in
    18  paper form; and
    19    (D) the procedures a party must follow to withdraw consent to  have  a
    20  notice  or  document  delivered  by  electronic  means and to update the
    21  party's electronic mail address;
    22    (3) the party:
    23    (A) before giving consent, is provided with a statement of  the  hard-
    24  ware  and  software requirements for access to and retention of a notice
    25  or document delivered by electronic means; and
    26    (B) consents electronically, or confirms consent electronically, in  a
    27  manner  that  reasonably demonstrates that the party can access informa-
    28  tion in the electronic form that will be used for notices  or  documents
    29  delivered  by  electronic means as to which the party has given consent;
    30  and
    31    (4) after consent of the party is given, the insurer, in the  event  a
    32  change  in  the  hardware  or  software requirements needed to access or
    33  retain a notice or document delivered  by  electronic  means  creates  a
    34  material  risk  that  the  party  will not be able to access or retain a
    35  subsequent notice or document to which the consent applies:
    36    (A) provides the party with a statement that describes:
    37    (i) the revised hardware and software requirements for access  to  and
    38  retention of a notice or document delivered by electronic means; and
    39    (ii) the right of the party to withdraw consent without the imposition
    40  of  any  condition  or consequence that was not disclosed at the time of
    41  initial consent; and
    42    (B) complies with paragraph two of this subsection.
    43    (e) (1) Any electronic mail being sent by an insurer  to  a  party  in
    44  connection  with the delivery of a notice or document delivered by elec-
    45  tronic means shall include in the subject  line  clear  and  conspicuous
    46  language alerting the receiving party as to what type of notice is being
    47  delivered to such party electronically.
    48    (2)  Any  electronic  mail  being  sent  by  an  insurer to a party in
    49  connection with the delivery of a notice or document delivered by  elec-
    50  tronic  means shall clearly and conspicuously include a clickwrap agree-
    51  ment embedded into the body of such electronic mail or a hyperlink lead-
    52  ing to a clickwrap agreement which will allow for the receiving party to
    53  acknowledge receipt of a notice being sent to such party by an  insurer.
    54  If the receiving party has not acknowledge receipt of such notice pursu-
    55  ant  to  this  section  within  two  weeks of such notice being sent, an
    56  insurer shall redeliver such notice in paper form to such party.
        S. 653                              3

     1    (f) This section does not affect requirements related  to  content  or
     2  timing of any notice or document required under applicable law.
     3    (g)  If  a  provision  of  this  chapter or applicable law requiring a
     4  notice or document to be provided to a party expressly requires  verifi-
     5  cation  or  acknowledgment  of  receipt  of  the notice or document, the
     6  notice or document may be delivered by  electronic  means  only  if  the
     7  method used provides for verification or acknowledgment of receipt.
     8    (h)  The  legal  effectiveness,  validity,  or  enforceability  of any
     9  contract or policy of insurance executed by a party may  not  be  denied
    10  solely  because of the failure to obtain electronic consent or confirma-
    11  tion of consent of the party in  accordance  with  subparagraph  (B)  of
    12  paragraph three of subsection (d) of this section.
    13    (i)  (1)  A withdrawal of consent by a party does not affect the legal
    14  effectiveness, validity, or  enforceability  of  a  notice  or  document
    15  delivered  by  electronic  means  to  the party before the withdrawal of
    16  consent is effective.
    17    (2) A withdrawal of consent by a party is effective within  a  reason-
    18  able period of time after receipt of the withdrawal by the insurer.
    19    (3)  Failure by an insurer to comply with paragraph four of subsection
    20  (d) and subsection (k) of this section may be treated, at  the  election
    21  of the party, as a withdrawal of consent for purposes of this section.
    22    (j)  This  section does not apply to a notice or document delivered by
    23  an insurer in an electronic form  before  the  effective  date  of  this
    24  section  to  a  party  who, before that date, has consented to receive a
    25  notice or document in an electronic form otherwise allowed by law.
    26    (k) If the consent of a party to receive certain notices or  documents
    27  in  an  electronic  form is on file with an insurer before the effective
    28  date of this section, and pursuant to this section, an  insurer  intends
    29  to deliver additional notices or documents to such party in an electron-
    30  ic  form,  then prior to delivering such additional notices or documents
    31  electronically, the insurer shall:
    32    (1) provide the party with a statement that describes:
    33    (A) the notices or documents that shall  be  delivered  by  electronic
    34  means  under  this  section that were not previously delivered electron-
    35  ically; and
    36    (B) the party's right to withdraw consent to have notices or documents
    37  delivered by electronic means, without the imposition of  any  condition
    38  or consequence that was not disclosed at the time of initial consent.
    39    (2) comply with paragraph two of subsection (d) of this section.
    40    (l)  An insurer shall deliver a notice or document by any other deliv-
    41  ery method permitted by law other than electronic means if:
    42    (1) the insurer attempts to deliver the notice or  document  by  elec-
    43  tronic means and has a reasonable basis for believing that the notice or
    44  document has not been received by the party, or
    45    (2)  the  insurer  becomes  aware  that  the  electronic  mail address
    46  provided by the party is no longer valid.
    47    (m) This section may not be construed to modify, limit,  or  supersede
    48  the  provisions  of  the  federal  Electronic  Signatures  in Global and
    49  National Commerce Act, Public Law 106-229, as amended.
    50    § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
    51  have become a law.